Y. Nancy You, M.D., MHSc
Colorectal Cancer Moon Shot
About Dr. You
Dr. You is an Associate Professor in the Department of Colorectal Surgical Oncology. She performs both open and advanced minimally-invasive surgery for colorectal and pelvic malignancies in the context of multidisciplinary care. She is also the medical director of the Familial High-risk Gastrointestinal Cancer Clinic, providing care to patients and families with inherited cancer syndromes.
Affiliations and Related Links
Fighting Cancer: It's Personal
What’s your Moon Shots focus?
In my clinical practice I have witnessed a dramatic increase in the proportion of young adults diagnosed with advanced stage colorectal cancer between ages of 18 and 50. My focus for the Moon Shot program is to understand the molecular biology of young age-of-onset colorectal cancer, through working with collaborators to understand the genomic landscapes, the microbiome profiles and the immune microenvironments.
What motivates and excites you?
I am motivated by the profound ways in which cancer diagnosis and treatments impact the many domains of young adults' lives. As our nations leading cancer center, we should lead in the research in this arena.
What makes the Moon Shots Program stand out?
The Moon Shot program enables cross disciplinary collaboration that otherwise would be difficult to build. This will allow us to build and overlay multiple layers of data and enable us to understand the disease on a deep and rich level.
What do you hope to accomplish?
We hope to understand young-onset colorectal cancer on a variety of levels including tumor biology, tumor microbiome and tumor immune microenvironments and we hope that these can translate to more efficient and impactful treatments.
What makes your fight against cancer personal?
In my work as a surgeon, I see firsthand the impact of my operations on patient’s lives and emotions, and how cancer surgery, along with other cancer treatments, impacts the busy lives of young adults.